Upcycled Sweater: Cat Bed

I'd like to say that this is my idea, but it's not. I saw a photo on Facebook suggesting that unused sweaters could be made into pet beds and I immediately thought of the ugliest purple 1980s sweater I'd picked up for £2 in the charity shop several months ago. I didn't buy it to wear - it had 9 lovely great big purple buttons on it, and £2 for 9 large purple buttons is a bargain, in my mind. Buttons are expensive if you buy them new!

So this hideous purple jumper has been languishing in my fabric scrap bag for months and months along with some old chair covers that our cat, Izzy, ripped to shreds when she was just a kitten. I can't throw anything away, honestly, not when I think that it might get repurposed/upcycled sometime down the road.

Izzy, our darling cat, came to us at the tender age of three weeks old as a feral Cat's Protection rescue. She was destined, along with her two brothers and sister, to be drowned unless the Cat's Protection collected them immediately. They did and I ended up with all four of them. They were so adorable - their eyes were still blue and they had to be fed milk every few hours out of a little syringe. When feeding their little ears would wiggle. Aaah, fond memories. Three out of the four cats were rehomed as they got older, and we kept Izzy (short for Isadora). You'd never know she was feral as she's such a housecat, preferring to lounge away indoors all day.

Shop bought cat beds are expensive too. We've talked about getting one but there always seemed to be something more important to spend the pennies on. When I saw the Facebook picture I knew what I needed to do with that hideous jumper and I set to work.

Photo from Facebook

Time: 2 hours, including cutting up scraps for stuffing
Sewing ability: minimal!
Materials:
1 unused sweater
2 terry towels or unused dishtowels or bathtowels
scraps or cotton for stuffing
thread
wool
needles
scissors

Cut your stuffing fabric into small pieces.
Fold towels so that they are nearly the size you want the base of your pet bed.
Layer with scrap stuffing if required.
Baste the layers together in a rough oval shape.
Turn over the edges towards the inside of the circle and loosely sew in place.
Place inside the body of the jumper.
Sew in place using some thick wool.
Stuff the arms and neck area with scraps or cotton.
Arrange in a circular shape around the base area.
Using a thread and needle, sew into place. If you use a matching thread you don't have to worry about how perfect your stitches are.
Embellish as desired!